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Here you will find a beginner's care guide and many resources to get you on your way to proper piggy pandemonium.
There are many types of Guinea Pigs. Over 1,000,000 families in USA alone have them as pets. If you are considering a guinea pig as a pet there are a few things you should be aware of. But, just like any pet they require a commitment from you as they live for several years. They become a part of the family.
Why would you want a Guinea Pig?
Aside from the fact that guinea pigs are incredibly cute, there are a variety of reasons why they make good pets. In particular, the common guinea pig is a low-cost, low-maintenance animal; you will need to change their bedding once or twice a week, supply fresh water every day or two and provide them with food and hay on a daily basis. A good cage will cost you around $30 to $40 if bought from a pet store, and $15-30 worth of bedding can last up to a month or more, depending on what you choose. Pellets are also inexpensive, running anywhere from $6 to $9 a bag, and hay is extremely cheap if purchased from a feed and garden store in bulk. Fresh vegetables can be obtained from the grocery store or grown in your own back yard.
For children, the guinea pig is an ideal pet. They are extremely docile, rarely bite and are very sociable. They love to be petted, and will gurgle and grunt happily and nonstop when given this kind of attention. They are larger than most other popular small mammals, such as mice, gerbils and hamsters making them easy to handle (and catch, should they happen to get away). Although they aren't as intelligent as rats, the guinea pig is trainable and far more lively than the stereotypes may suggest. |
Guinea Pig Facts:
Their scientific name is Cavia Tschuldi and their nickname in South America where they were first discovered, is Cavy. As you might have guessed Guinea Pigs are rodents. Near the Andes Mountains in Peru over a thousand years ago, some Inca Indians were exploring near the tall grass on the edge of a forest, when they found dozens of little hairy creatures scampering around. The fat little animals when they bent down to pick them up did not bite or even seem to mind. The Incas soon learned that the cavies or cuy, were wild but safe animals, who liked to hide in tall grass away from the hungry owls and other predators that they were easy prey to. They searched out burrows and homes made by rabbits or snakes or other creatures and made these spaces their home. When it was night and dark, they would wander out to find food. Wild guinea pigs live all over South America from Argentina to Columbia . Some scientists say that the Inca Indians were the first to tame the wild guinea pigs, but other scientists think that even prehistoric people as far back as 5000 B.C. were keeping guinea pigs as pets and raising them as a source of food. |
